Sparky's Epic Adventure Across North America (Port Hood & Tatamagouche NS)

Port Hood Cape Breton Island, Nova Scotia

 July 31st: Sparky and I have spent the last two days slowly poking our way west-ish, from North Sydney, to Port Hood and Mabou on the Cabot Trail in Cape Breton and today Tatamagouche in Nova Scotia.

Located on Cape Breton Island, Port Hood is well known for their five sandy beaches, which makes their marketing plan simple:

       Eat. Beach. Sleep. Repeat. 

Port Hood - 1 of 5 beautiful beaches

Bistro in Port Hood. Waiting for our takeout order

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Rankin Sisters pub

In the nearby hamlet of Mabou, The Red Shoe Pub has become a kind of “home away from home” for many locals and visitors over the years. The Rankin Sisters’ cozy spot offers a menu of Nova Scotia home cooking. "The Shoe" serves food and drinks and great live music, seven days a week. It is open seasonally from the last Friday in May to mid-October."

Born in Mabou, the Rankins come from a family of 12 siblings, all of whom would entertain the neighbours musically every third weekend as part of a cèilidh. (A social gathering for singing, dancing and telling stories.)  

Rankin Sister's - The Red Shoe

The first Rankin Family band formed in the 1970s when siblings Geraldine, Genevieve, David, John Morris, and Raylene Rankin began performing at local weddings and dances in Cape Breton. As the older siblings went away to college and university, the younger siblings Jimmy, Cookie and Heather took their places.

Heather, Cookie & Raylene Rankin along with their eldest sister Genevieve Fakoory, purchased the Red Shoe Pub in 2004 and opened its doors in 2005. 

Mabou Nova Scotia 

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Tatamagouche Nova Scotia, is situated on the Northumberland Strait north of Truro and west of Pictou at the mouths of the French and Waugh Rivers.

Tatamagouche derives its name from the native Mi'kmaq term Takǔmegoochk

Tatamagouche Nova Scotia

, translated as "Meeting of the waters".

Tourist train in Tatamagouche NS

Tatamagouche Nova Scotia